The long, winding path to The Dark Tower is almost complete, and audiences will get their chance to see if Stephen King's epic has been brought to the big screen with the justice it deserves. But already there's question about what the next film in the Dark Tower saga will go, what with the first film already changing quite a bit from the franchise's literary roots. Well, if director Nikolaj Arcel's recent statements are any indication, it looks like that approach will continue, as the next film looks to continue drawing from the book series, in sequence. Arcel explained his intent, as follows:
The best way to continue the series, if we are lucky enough to continue, would be with what is actually book two, because now the other characters start coming into the story. They start gathering the band of heroes. This is really only trying to encompass novel one, with elements from some of the other novels.
That second book in this series is The Drawing of the Three, which sees Roland continuing his quest against the Man in Black. This time, he'll draw three companions from our world, through three different time periods, and enlist them into his quest. And from the sound of Nikolaj Arcel's thoughts on the follow up to The Dark Tower, we might be getting another movie that borrows heavily from the book it takes its name from, while also continuing to tell the new, and final, cycle of events between Roland Deschain and The Man in Black.
But in addition to the good news that Indiewire had to report, I was able to speak with Arcel personally during a recent press day for The Dark Tower. Sure enough, we discussed if The Drawing of Three would be the next film, and with that in mind, I asked if two fan favorite characters would be returning with this new film: Eddie and Susannah Dean. Seeing as Nikolaj Arcel is a huge fan of Stephen King himself, his response was that of any fan given the keys to the kingdom:
Yes. Of course. There's no way you can continue the story without bringing them in.
Should The Dark Tower hit whatever mark Sony feels is necessary for further franchise development, it feels like the creative energy that Arcel and everyone involved put into this first film will only go further towards honoring the series and its fans. With the director already amped for future installments, and both Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey seemingly ready to go again, we're really curious about where a sequel to this new incarnation of Roland's adventures would take the series.
Of course, we'll be hearing plenty of what the fans have to say about The Dark Tower, as it's set to unveil its secrets this Friday. In the meantime, you can count on CinemaBlend to provide more coverage of Stephen King's latest film adaptation throughout the week.
